“The Valley” star Michelle Saniei’s ex-husband, Jesse Lally, was just as shocked as fans when her romance with Dr. Dre was revealed.
“I did not get a heads up,” Lally told TMZ Wednesday, referring to his ex’s romance with the iconic rapper. “I saw it on social media the same way as everyone else.”
Lally also threw shade at the new couple’s 24-year age gap, noting he “didn’t see this one coming.”
“I don’t think she ever listened to rap music. So dating Dr. Dre… good for her. But, hey, the N.W.A is the first cassette I ever bought in 1988 — the year Michelle was born — so good for her.”
Despite his and Saniei’s “traumatic” divorce last year, Lally made it clear that he is happy for his ex-wife and that his main focus continues to be on their 6-year-old daughter, Isabella.
“Michelle’s divorced and she’s single and whatever makes her happy is cool. I just hope she’s really focused on Isabella right now. Other than that, she can do whatever she wants.”
The real estate agent, 37, and Dre, 61, were first spotted together on Saturday.
Snaps obtained by Page Six showed the duo holding hands at celeb hotspot Nobu in Los Angeles.
The two left the restaurant in a black Mercedes SUV together and were surrounded by what appeared to be security personnel.
The unlikely pair reportedly met through the reality star’s close friend, Ashley Palmer-Gilkey.
Palmer-Gilkey is the general manager of Dr. Dre’s Aftermath Records, according to her Instagram bio. Dr. Dre founded the label in 1996 after he left Death Row Records.
A source told the US Sun that the women have been friends for a long time and Saniei has been around Dr. Dre “for months.” However, it’s unclear when things turned romantic between them.
Since separating from Lally in 2023, Saniei has only been in one other public relationship, with financial advisor Aaron Nosler.
The pair split in July 2025 after a year together. Lally, 44, also told TMZ that he hopes Saniei’s new relationship with Dre works out better than her previous one for Isabella’s sake.
“She’s happy, she’s single, she can do whatever she wants. I just want her to really focus on making sure that Isabella doesn’t have to go through what she went through with the Aaron breakup. It was really difficult on all of us.
“Good for her. Go get it,” he jokingly concluded.
